


Clooney

by EideticGenius



Category: Criminal Minds, Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Clooney is the real MVP, Derek Morgan is In Love, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, I miss my dog, I wish it was but CBS hates us, M/M, Moreid, My First Work in This Fandom, Non-Canon Relationship, Oneshot, Recovery is a Journey, Spencer Has Nightmares, Trauma is an Ongoing Thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:28:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25747414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EideticGenius/pseuds/EideticGenius
Summary: Spencer has a nightmare and finds comfort in an unexpected companion.
Relationships: Derek Morgan/Spencer Reid
Comments: 8
Kudos: 257





	Clooney

It wasn’t a typical nightmare. Not Raphael beating him into submission, or watching Henry become one of the faces of the too many little boys that fill his mind, covered in leaves and dirt. Used and discarded like trash. It was something else. Something cold and draining, leaving him clawing for breath the moment his mind snaps back to reality.

He was in a bed. Not his own, no, he had a sculpted body next to him. Reid could make out the sheets hugging the man’s hips, his caramel skin along the curve of his back shining in the dim light from the hall. He’d insisted they always leave the light on. And Morgan was kind enough never to ask why. The man in question snoring not-so-softly by his side. Spencer never did mind though. It was comforting to know someone was there, with him while he slept. Who knew a germaphobe would be so much more at ease with a warm body beside him?  
Focusing on Morgan’s snores, the genius manages to get his own breathing back to normal. He should try get back to sleep. It had been a long case in Georgetown, and they were expected bright an early back at the BAU in the morning. 

But some miracles could not be managed. 

Carefully, Spencer scoots himself over to the edge of the mattress, slipping out of the bed and padding over to the door. Grabbing a robe off the back of the door as he passes, his socks muffle the sound of his footsteps dragging down the stairs of the two-storey idyllic home. 

It’s a cool autumn evening, the moon high in the sky hung by stars unmarred by wisps of cloud. Reid slips out the sliding door, letting the cold prickle the hairs on his arms to stand on end. He liked the cold, especially on nights like this, when it matched that heaviness in his soul. He shakes his head at himself, lowering down to sit on the porch step. Now that was a bit dramatic. The wood creaks beneath his weight.   
It was nights like this when the needle marks in his arm would begin to sting, vying for his attention. And he was normally successful in ignoring them—not indulging in those memories. It was a slippery slope, one he was all too familiar with. Spencer knew the stinging was psychosomatic; that it was all in his head born from his need for an escape, an outlet to bleed himself unto. 

Just as his hand goes to pinch at those scars, something cold and wet stops him. A snout. He jerks back, caught by surprise, only to find himself face to face with Clooney, Derek’s dog.   
Now, it wasn’t to say Reid didn’t like dogs. They didn’t like him. Or well, any animals really. Something about his nervousness would always set them on guard. Cats had been known to hiss, dogs to bark—Hell, an iguana had scuttled off head-first into a rock once. So, you could definitely count Reid as surprised to see Clooney, resting his head right over the crook of his elbow expectantly as his tail thumped gently against the porch, waiting. 

Reid frowned, waiting a beat. “Can I help you?” 

Clooney blinked up at Spencer, tilting his head to the left. 

Spencer sighed tiredly. “You obviously can’t answer me, you’re a dog. Though, if Morgan taught you sounding boards I wouldn’t know. Are you hungry…?” He hazarded, arching a brow as he looked over the pet. He was older now, much older since when he’d first met Morgan’s beloved pet. Flecks of grey surrounded his dark eyes with flat ears and a medium sized body that was undoubtedly healthy due to Morgan’s morning jogs. A black and white Labrador Retriever, undoubtedly intelligent and stealthy on a dark evening. Clooney had that going for him, obviously. 

"Look, I'm fine. It was just a bad dream." He said to the dog, as if the pet could understand. 

Tail still waving slowly, Clooney nudged Reid’s arm again and let out a little whine as he pawed at the man’s thigh. 

Reid sighed a little, moving his hand gently over old Clooney’s head and stroked his fur. Clooney immediately relaxed. “So this is what you wanted.” Reid surmised in a hushed tone.   
Although he could think of a million and one different types of bacteria that lurk on a canine body, he slowly found himself drawing comfort from the soul beside him. It was nice, to just sit there and talk. Even if it was a little bit of a one-sided conversation. “Must get lonely out here every night, I guess. You do have squirrels to chase during the day, but everyone goes to sleep, and you’re left sitting here.” 

“Then again,” He murmured, “you do have the stars to keep you company.” Hand moving on his own accord now, he scrubs and scratches over Clooney’s ears. “Though, you know we’ll never be able to see all the stars in the sky. Regions of space are whizzing away from one another at an ever-increasing rate, the first population of stars to form in the Universe are now too far away for us to ever hope of spying them – even using the best present or future telescope.”  
Clooney huffed, and Spencer nodded. “I know. But at least they’re nice to look at right now.” 

For a brief moment there, Spencer was beginning to understand why people choose to adopt pets. It was a different form of companionship, of love. You could talk to a pet, laugh, or cry with one, and at the end of the day they’re still there; ready and waiting. The thought made Spencer smile a little, brushing his fingers through Clooney’s fur some more. 

“What are you doin’ out here, Pretty Boy?” 

Clooney’s tail begins to wag that little bit faster, like it always did when Derek was around. Sighing deeply, Spencer twists to get a look at Morgan. The man was only in his boxers, leaning against the door frame with those broad arms folded across his chest and that twinkle in his eye that let him know he wasn’t pleased with waking up alone. 

“Star-gazing with Clooney.” Reid said, patting the old dog’s head gently once. “I think he likes astronomy. I was just about to teach him about Orion’s Belt.” Clooney shifted his head, nudging Reid’s bare thigh with his wet snout for more pats. Spencer’s tired smile came back as he looked down at the dog, scratching behind his ears. 

“Yeah? Is that right, Cloons?” Derek looked at his canine companion, his once vibrant black and white coat flecked with grey speckles. He was showing his age, almost as much as Morgan was feeling his. “Are you trying to steal my boyfriend now, huh?” Clooney pulls himself up with a soft puff of effort, padding over to Morgan, tilting his head up at his master as his tongue lulls out the side of his mouth. Derek gives in, patting the pups head. 

“I’m already his, Derek.” Reid jokes a little sleepily, pulling himself up of the porch step and going to make his way inside when Derek stops him with a gentle hand on his shoulder. There is a look in his eye, and Spencer knows what Derek is going to ask. 

“One of those nights?” 

Gaze flicking from Morgan’s eyes down to Clooney’s before he sighs, Reid nods a little sheepishly. No matter if he tried to act normal, right now Morgan could see right through him. He’d been doing better, trying to be more honest with his feelings. It was tough, but… he was getting there. Even admitting to a bad night was progress. “…But I’m okay now.” 

There were questions hanging in the air that Morgan wanted to know the answers to. But Rome wasn’t built in a day. And he knew that if he said that out loud, Derek would get fully referenced facts regarding just how long it did take to build an empire. 

And that just made Derek love Spencer that much more. 

“Okay, kid. Come on. Let’s try get some more shut-eye before sunrise.” He said, leaning in and kissing Spencer’s forehead just once, before letting him go. Spencer smiled a little, boneless as he dragged himself back up the stairs, almost stumbling at the top. 

Clooney pulls himself up, ready to go back to his pile of cushions on the deck when Derek whistles once. Clooney lifts his head, seemingly confused.   
“Come on, Bud. Inside, maybe I’ll let you sleep on the bed.” Derek said with a lazy smile at the dog, who understood immediately. He trotted happily inside, claws clacking against the hardwood as he headed up the stairs like he was a young puppy again, his fluffy tail wagging behind him while Derek shut and locked the sliding door. 

When Derek gets back to the bedroom, Reid has his eyes closed and is laying on his side curled around a large, fluffy lump in the middle of the mattress. The lump is doing it’s best to be an immoveable object, and Morgan let’s out a tired chuckle in defeat as he scavenges space in his own bed. There’s a paw digging into his chest, and a cold snout against his neck, but the man can make out the way Spencer is comfortably snuggled into the scruff of Clooney’s fur. He smiles. 

Derek Morgan is an incredibly lucky man indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> Kia Ora, 
> 
> This is my first time writing for Criminal Minds, super nervous but I couldn't get this out of my head after I saw a work of art by Owlpip on Tumblr, link below.   
> https://owlpip.tumblr.com/post/622385523035717632/decided-to-throw-some-colors-onto-a-few-spencer  
> Please leave a review or kudos if you can, I would very much appreciate it. Constructive criticism is welcome, too!  
> Thanks for reading, 
> 
> Claire


End file.
